Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1887-06-02
IN THE NORTH Room.
by CLARA MERWIN.

am an old bachelor.
If there is human being whose nerves
are made of steel, am that individual.
1 have never once lost my presence of
mind.
don't believe in ghosts, of course.
I'm not sentimental man, and have
never been in love.
Once, when L was young man, thought
that was in love with pair OF brown eyes
and q head of golden hair, long, dark lashes.
and a skin like peach bloom. / lost my
usual good sense for while and proposed
to Polly Bashfeld, and was accepted. But
] soon grew tired of my pretty toy, and
began to see that % young man married
would be young man marred;" the girls
had lost all interest in me, and the married
ladies took to snubbing me. had not half
tho nice invitations 1 used to have, and, be-
sides, old Mr.. Bashheld failed, and Polly's
fifty thousand vanished into thin air. She
would have nothing on marriage instead of
being an heiress; and so one day told her
We Lad both made n mistake, and she said
probably l was the best judge. and gave
me back her ring. 1t had nice diamond
in il, and 1 had it set for q shirt stud at
once.
And, of course, 1 sent her back her let
ters. and she returned mine; and after that
we never met again. got out of the affair
mere easily than most fellows do, and I've
never got into such one again. Perhaps,
when I'm old and begin to break down a
little, shall marry some nice young girl
and settle down comfortably. It's pretty
good thing to do then, but not before one
Is past fifty.
Well, as 1 said, I saw no more of Polly,
and forgot all about her in few years. I
stand before you practical man, untram-
meled by any sort Of superstition, with a
good income, good health. and enjoying my
Ito; and in this condition walked in at
the door OF Mrs. Regan's confounded little
old house at exactly half past ten on the
saith day of August, 1886.
We had started for the Mountain House,
and Bradley, and his trap had broken
doun, and here We were on q rough road,
with our journey not half way over,
Catskill as far behind US as the Mountain
House was before us; both of us as hungry
as hunters; both of us dead tired.
~We can't go on" said Bradley.
%We can't go back" said /. Then over
the stone fence popped q sun-bonnet, and
some one cried, "Your wheel has come of,
hant it," And on my answering that it
had, and Chat I should like to know what
We were going to do that night, the sun
bonnet replied, "Why, do tell, to be sure.
Well, now. and everybody is chock full of
summer boarders, and so be 1. But l
guess can fgger il if do O little head
woak- I'll put them Jackson boys TO sleep
viii our Sam, and Ill make the help go
on 10 the setiee, and one of you shall have
the kitchen chamber and one the north
room il you want And my old man, he's
. vheelrieht by trade, and he'll jigger
your wheel for you In two shakes of q
khcep's tail"
We looked at each other. I did not
know how long il took sheep to shake
its tail, nor whether "jigger" was technical
or local don't know yet; but l smelt
coffee and ham and eggs. somewhere, and
doubtless so did Bradley. I'VE shall be
only too glad to accept your hospitality" "
said he.
-Dollar day." said she; "thafs cheap
enough"
ESQ il u.s." said Bradley. ~Come, Ham
lton."
came. What would have done 10 q
waiter who presented mo with such sup
per at the club? But starvation does not
discriminate. I ate leartily. And after
ward, being asked 10 choose between tho
Kitchen chamber and the north room, /
said the north room, by all means. l had
q vague idea that il would be farthest re-
DOtCu lfOm Ito Tebt Oh lne ebthDllbuIubuL.
IL was queer-looking place, with a
chimney in tho center, the roof running
from peak in tho middle of the floor on
either side. One square window and one
sloping one, and bags, hams, ropes Of
onions, and suspended dresses adorned it
in every direction. Tho bed was apparent
ly stuffed with corn-cobs. The pillow was
OF hay, and tho sheets smelled Of camphor,
and had Kerosene lamp by way OF il
Elimination. Remembering my spring mat
trcss and silk quilts lined with down at
home, my velvet carpet, the pink and
white shade for my gas, wondered how /
could endure ii so calmly. But what
should 1 have gained by making fuss2
Nothing, surely. Never trouble yourself
about the inevitable; simply shut your eyes
20 it. i shut mine. Having pulled tho
kerosene lamp out, after q blue explosion
Of some kind, which made me wonder il
we're 10 be a subject OF paragraph head
cd awful Accident" In tho next mornings
papers, adjusted myself as we'll as pos
siblo between the softest corn -cobs.
when one sleeps one forgets ones bed
said J. "Let me Sleep" And totally refus-
ing 70 hear tn, droning of hideous insect
with broken back, who could walk, fly,
climb, leap, wiggle, crawl-in short, who
possessed every means Of locomotion
known 10 animated nature-I went TO
sleep. / awoke Just rs the moon was ris-
ing-about one o'clock. The light fell
through the one straight window of my
room and made white square on the